Power minister Piyush Goyal fails to end deadlock over 2000 MW Sabansiri Project

The efforts of Union power minister Piyush Goyal to end the deadlock for one of the India's largest power project – the 2000 Mega Watt Lower Subansiri Hydroelectric Power Project (LSHEP) – seems to have gone in vain with the minister appointing another committee to look into the concerns.

The deadlock has jacked up costs of the project by Rs 1,200 crore due to its suspension since December 2011, and National Hydro-Power Corporation Limited (NHPCL), which is undertaking the project, has already spent around Rs 6,500 crore on the project completing over 50 per cent of the construction.

According to sources, the six-hour long meeting of the power minister with heavyweights of Central Water Commission, National Hydro-Power Corporation Limited, power ministry officials, dam experts and representatives from two dozen organizations from Assam ended without any solution.

A senior official from the power ministry said, "Power minister has formed an expert committee to look into apprehensions raised by earlier expert committees and has asked them to submit their report within three months."

The committee comprises eight people, four from government and four from among those opposing the project. RK Pachauri has been appointed as arbitrator. He claimed that talks had gone one step ahead.

However, talking to dna, Akhil Gogoi of Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), which is spearheading the anti-dam stir in Assam termed the meeting as unsuccessful. He said, "The government failed to meet most of our demands. Our major demands of 12 per cent power sharing free of cost to Assam, cumulative environment impact assessment of all 169 small hydro power projects coming in Arunachal Pradesh as the impact would be on downstream which is Assam and holding public hearings in Assam for power projects in Arunachal Pradesh all have been rejected.

People attending the meeting said that power minister refused these demands stating that National Power Policy could not be changed for the demands of Assam and the state has to abide by it.

But Gogoi and his team mates argued that since Assam is in downstream and is going to bear the brunt of these projects, it should be given a fair amount of opportunity. Apart from Subansari power project, 169 more small hydro projects aggregating to 280 MW are being setup in Arunachal Pradesh and which are also going to impact Assam.

The project -- Lower Subansiri Hydroelectric Power Project (LSHEP) -- is a 2,000 MW hydro project which is coming up on Subansiri river, a tributary of Brahmaputra, at Gerukamukh village in Dhemaji district near Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. The hydroelectric project lies partly in Assam and partly in Arunachal Pradesh. The dam is located in the Dhemaji district of Assam, 2.3km away from Gerukamukh, whereas the powerhouse is located

in the Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh.
It is alleged that the dam is located in a seismic zone but it is significantly under-designed to resist earthquakes. The fluctuation of water level in the river is also feared to affect the ecology in the lower Subansiri region in future.